Summary
It took just six minutes for the captain to ease the tension with the opening goal and by half time Chelsea had the game won. Daniel Sturridge with his seventh goal of the season and Juan Mata with his fourth both scored from close range before the interval.
With Didier Drogba the fulcrum, there was a purpose to Chelsea's attacking play today and it took a very good double save from Wolves keeper Wayne Hennessey to prevent more goals being added in the second half.
The clean sheet will be just as important for confidence as the goals and Petr Cech, a near spectator in the opening half, played his part in the second period with a couple of good stops, but it was an afternoon with pleasingly few mistakes by the Chelsea rearguard.
Critics will point to the fact that Chelsea were playing a side in 17th place at the start of the day with a poor record at the Bridge, but this was still a good 90 minutes work by Andre Villas-Boas's side.
Best moment
Given the lead up to this game, Juan Mata's dead-ball delivery, guided in expertly by John Terry to bring Stamford Bridge to its feet for the first time in the game was just what the doctor ordered. 
Team news
Oriol Romeu made his first league start and played a steady match as the anchor man with Raul Meireles, who played there in Leverkusen, moving further forward on the left of midfield with Ramires retained on the right. Frank Lampard was on the bench.
The front three were unchanged, as were the central defence pair of John Terry and David Luiz. Ashley Cole was fit again so replaced Jose Bosingwa at left-back.
Wolves had Stephen Hunt and Jamie O'Hara suspended and Richard Stearman injured, and Kevin Doyle was ruled out late on, so the visitors brought in Matt Jarvis, Steven Fletcher and Ronald Zubar.
First half
Meireles only half caught a shot from the edge of the area in the opening minutes but it rolled closer to the post than Hennessey in the Wolves goal first anticipated. Branislav Ivanovic surged past full-back Elokobi soon after and almost gave Meireles the pass he was looking for as Chelsea started well.
We kept the pressure on and Ramires almost made Wolves pay when Milijas was caught in possession but Hennessey saved at full-stretch from a well-struck shot. It was only a temporary stay of execution for Mick McCarthy's men.
Mata took the corner and there was Terry, glancing a header inside the far post for his fourth goal of the season.
Mata could have got his name on the scoresheet soon afterwards but as a defender dived in, he fired over.
Edwards was rightly booked on 16 minutes for tripping Ramires on halfway when Sturridge's quick thinking had set the Brazilian away with a lot of empty pitch ahead of him.
There was little to concern the Chelsea rearguard in the first half. Ward headed well over and Edwards went closer with a header after a corner later on but Cech was largely unconcerned.
At the other end, Cole almost picked out Mata at the far post after a smart Mata decoy run had pulled defenders away from a crowded penalty area.
It was Mata who played a key part in Chelsea's second goal, scored by Sturridge on 28 minutes. The Blues built up from the back with Romeu spreading play wide; Cole then finding Meireles who played Mata down the line. Doing well to stay on his feet after Zubar had tried to tackle him, the Spaniard settled himself before picking out England's newest international striker for a finish from six yards out.
Karl Henry became the second Wolves booking on 34 minutes, Ramires again the fouled player.
Mick McCarthy had seen enough and changed his team before the break. Midfielder Milijas came off to be replaced by Ebanks-Blake to give the visitors two strikers in a switch from 4-2-3-1 to 4-4-2.
It didn't stem the Chelsea tide. Hennessey saved two-handed to keep out a rocket from Sturridge and Cole tried his luck from range too but it curled away from the target.
Our left-back had more success as a provider a minute before the break, collecting a pass from Drogba before curling the ball low into the six-yard box where Mata half-volleyed home unstoppably. A lead of 3-0 was taken into the dressing room at the break.
Second half
Chelsea had plenty of blue shirts in the Wolves area four minutes after the restart when Ramires drilled a low ball across, but somehow the runs all evaded the arriving pass. Moments later a Ramires volley from distance looked well on its way to being a goal when the keeper plucked it from the air. Chelsea were beginning how we had left off.
However Wolves made their best chance on 52 minutes when Ward took a good pass and knocked the ball wide of David Luiz, only to shoot wide.
Chelsea went a bit ragged for a few minutes after that and had a cross been a few inches lower, Wolves would have pulled one back.
But then on 58 minutes we saw a much better Blues - Mata releasing Ramires who found Sturridge. He needed no second invitation to take on the Wolves defence for pace and won. A low cross to the far post however lacked a vital degree of accuracy.
Lampard entered the fray on 69 minutes, a straight swap for Meireles.
The search for the fourth goal went on. Drogba and Sturridge had attempts from distance but when a chance came closer in, Hennessey pulled off a very good double save, first from Sturridge and then from Mata.
Chelsea were more open at the back this half compared with the first and Cech took his turn to save twice in a matter of minutes, with his legs from Jarvis before having to get across his goal to keep out Ward.
Drogba and Ivanovic were replaced by Torres and Bosingwa for the closing stages. Torres ran beyond the tiring Wolves back line but his attempted chip past Hennessey lacked the required power.
Terry delayed taking a throw before the end and received his fifth booking of the season. He will be suspended for the Carling Cup tie against Liverpool on Tuesday. The final whistle blew soon after to give the team three points and a second clean sheet in the last three league games.
Chelsea (4-3-3): Cech; Ivanovic (Bosingwa 76), D Luiz, Terry (c), Cole; Ramires, Romeu, Meireles (Lampard 69); Sturridge, Drogba (Torres 76), Mata.
Unused subs Turnbull, Mikel, Malouda, Kalou.
Scorers Terry 6, Sturridge 28, Mata 44.
Booked Terry 89.
Wolves (4-2-3-1): Hennessey; Zubar (Forde 75), Johnson (c), Berra, Elokobi; Henry, Milijas (Ebanks-Blake 37); Jarvis, Edwards, Ward; Fletcher (Guedioura 83).
Unused subs De Vries, Craddock, Doherty, Hammill.
Booked Edwards 16, Henry 34.
Referee Lee Mason.
Crowd 41,648.
